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Toll Bridge Slavers
A resident slaver band from Rapid City, Toll Bridge takes their name from their original business model. Much maligned even by the raiders of the city, they have recently found an ally in Custer's army, and gladly support their war against the Dakota Regulators. History The Toll Bridge slavers came about with the merger of several smaller slaver crews in 2153. Their leader was Amy Sarsbech, a former prostitute from The Free State of Vermillion, who quickly moved against the other bands. Her crew established their camp on an overpass used by caravans and began charging tolls for passage, with those who refused taken captive, as well as any nearby wasters. While they did brisk business in the first few months, merchants and travelers would use other routes and soon the only ones who came were the desperate and caravans that trafficked in flesh. The Toll Bridge crew then build gates and expand pens in their camp, fortifying it some before they began roaming into the rest of the ruins to slave.They would target lone travelers and junkie dens, slaving and breaking their wills before the caravans were expected. The slavers carried on this path for seven years before they came under attack from jealous rivals. The attackers would target Toll Bridge's slaver missions, ambushing and quickly retreating before they could be fired upon. This harassment would last for six months before the Toll Bridge crew managed to catch their rivals in a decisive battle, killing many and slaving the survivors. This would be followed by an attack on the rival camp, where they would free the slaves out of spite and replace them with slavers. Peace would resume on the Toll Bridge for the next two years, broken by a feral swarm in mid-2162. The swarm threw themselves against the bridge couldn't force their way through the gates. The slavers would shoot them down, but see the need for further defenses. To this end they would direct their slaves to drag car frames and block their walls, as well as reinforcing their gate and making crude walls for the side walks to block snipers. The slavers would also clear out & block the entrances of nearby buildings to stop mutants from using them as nests, and traded five of their captives for a crate of landmines that they dropped in several manholes. They would continue to target drifters and junkies, but by 2170 they had enslaved those close by. That year Sarsbech decided they would target the nearby raider gangs, who seemed always plentiful. This broke a sort of unspoken truce between the two factions that would lead to over a century of violence, though it would be profitable initially. Toll Bridge would go after the smaller gangs to begin with, capturing them on their way to or from battle, until their targets got wary and holed-up in their camps. The slavers still weren't suspected in the attacks yet, but after receiving a large order in 2175 they would launch an attack on the Switchblades' camp, using their landmines as improvised breaching charges. They then over-powered the surprised raiders, several of whom would escape in the confusion and spread the word, destroying Toll Bridge's reputation in the city. This would catch up with them in 2179 when several raider gangs laid siege to their camp, forcing the slavers to retreat after losing Sarsbech. The Toll Bridge crew would flee to the northern portion of town to regroup, and found they numbered just eighteen with only a few collars. There was talk about joining other crews but Tommy 'Chains' , a founding member, would point out that they find a new camp and try to alert their buyers. They would succeed in both of these, claiming a hotel from a handful of addicts and collaring them, as well as letting their caravan know of their new location. Due to this Chains would be formally acknowledged as the leader, and they would slowly start rebuilding, spending much of their funds fortifying the hotel. Due to the stigma attached to the Toll Bridge potential recruits avoided joining them, causing them to look outside of Rapid City for replacements. This would be accomplished by spreading word among their buyers that they would take on any potential slavers, and this would attract recruits overtime, although the quality varied wildly. This influx of outsiders would be scorned by the clannish raiders of the city, and further alienate the other slaver bands. In the fall of 2183 one of the Toll Bridge's patrols were attacked by the newly formed Dakota Regulators, a vigilante group from Rapid Valley. The slavers would manage to escape with some slaves in tow, but from then on had to be wary of yet another group. To try and counter their enemies' watches, the slavers would knock down a basement wall to the sewers and begin to explore the tunnels in the winter of 2183, killing ferals and leaving markings on the wall. They made their first raid from this route in January of 2284, emerging from a manhole and capturing a trio of scavers before returning the same way. While many in the ranks viewed the tunnels as a highway through the city, Chains insisted that they use the utmost care so not to let anyone know. This would continue for five years, until Chains died the summer of 2189 and Mickly Hardee was chosen as his replacement. One of the outsiders recruited through the caravans, Hardee was a brash but accomplished slaver, and he stepped up usage of the sewers to maximize profits. This worked for a time, but in 2193 a returning party would miss a marking and stumble into a feral gathering, causing the mutants to pursue the slavers, with the commotion attracting more of the creatures. By the time the humans returned to the basement they were being chased by over forty ferals and had thrown their captives to them to buy themselves a few seconds. The remaining slavers would run to the lobby and lock the basement door, throwing debris and furniture in front of it while calling for help. The rest of the crew would come running and uncover the door, throwing three grenades through and then mopping up the survivors. In the wake of this incident the slavers would assess the structural damage and set watches to ensure no more ghouls came through the sewers. They would spend two months propping and crudely reinforcing the foundation, as well as setting checkpoints in the sewers. They would learn their lesson and continue taking slaves, and defended against several attacks in the late 2190s. In 2203 the Dakota Regulators would go after the caravans that the group traded with, causing the merchants to randomly visit and have slavers escort them back out. This would put a strain the Toll Bridge Crew for the next several years with Hardee dying on one such escort in 2208 due to a Yen Boy ambush. His replacement was a much more pragmatic former mercenary named Evans, who spent heavily on arms and armor for his followers, and turrets for their base. The Regulator pressure would relent in 2210, allowing the caravans to return to an organized schedule for shipments. Under Evans' leadership the Toll Bridge crew would slowly rebuild their numbers, and begin to resume street movements. They would also resume capturing nearby raiders, which would refocus attention on them, and bring several attacks over the next several years. In 2214 on suck attack threatened to enter the hotel, but the slavers' penchant for landmines would save them again, with members dropping them from windows. Evans' would take this as a warning and pull back on surface patrols, returning many of the band to the sewers. This would turn out to be a wise choice as The Rust Bones actively attacked them from 2215-2217 until other groups found their attention, leaving the slavers alone. Toll Bridge continued along with their business as usual until Evans died in his sleep in 2225, and Edgar Gershon was chosen as his replacement. While popular for his generosity while drinking, Gershon had no real sense of leadership and under his reign the slavers roamed according to their own whims, or sat around without working, something previously unheard of. Gershon tolerated this as the loafers claimed to be guarding the building, though this would cause resentment amongst the more active members. These tensions would build over time until 2234 when Gershon died suddenly in his sleep. While some were curious about this, few would ask questions as the active faction of the band quickly voted in their leader, Raymond Bering, Who almost immediately restored order to the ranks. He did this by telling the lazy members to leave, with those who refused fitted with collars. Next he outfitted his smaller band with the best equipment he could buy, and sent envoys to nearby raiders for parley. The raiders were skeptical of the slavers' intention but after a day of negotiations it was agreed that they would receive five slaves worth of Ring-pulls in exchange of peace. A few of the slavers would object to this, but the majority saw the need to operate relatively freely, and the slaves were quickly gathered and sold. The slavers would then be able to use the surface and hunt there, capturing junkies and scavengers with near impunity, having to only be on the lookout for the regulators or the more xenophobic raider gangs. The sewer tunnels would again become a problem in 2240, with radroaches and feral ghouls migrating into the basement of their hotel. Bering would organize his outfit into kill teams and led them in purging the basement and nearby tunnels, before blockading the entrance with debris, as they feared collapsing it would cause the building to fall. After this the slavers would exclusively use surface streets which brought more attention to their activities but their equipment would see them through most encounters with few losses. The Toll Bridge would manage to merge with a smaller crew in 2246, which allowed them to bring in more slaves, but it would also attract thee attention of the regulators who were disturbed at the idea of resurgent slavers. They would then step up their patrols to catch the slavers, leading to several firefights, which killed few of the Toll Bridge but did disrupt their supply caravans. They would come infrequently over the next five years, until a new group entered the ruins. Calling themselves Custer's American Army, they would buy slaves from some of the other crews in the ruins, and Bering would see a solution to the group's supply problems. He would personally lead a contingent of slaves to Camp Rapid and met with the garrison commander to work on a deal. The meeting would go well and the Toll Bridge Crew would lead dozens of drives there over the next seven years, even after the caravans returned and Bering died. The group's golden age would end in June of 2258 when the junkie horde of Vault 52 swept through the ruins, with one wave targeting the slavers' hotel. The Toll Bridge crew would put up a fierce resistance, but the dwellers were simply too numerous and managed to enter the hotel. In the resulting frenzy a handful of the Toll Bridge crew would manage to make it to the basement, unbarricade the sewer entrance and escape. These individuals would head to Camp Rapid which was the only place in the ruins that they could be sure of a friendly reception. Here they would learn that most settlements had been attacked, including Camp Rapid, and the city was in more chaos than usual. The slavers would wait for any of their fellows but after two days found none, and began to consider their options. While all wanted to continue their operations, they had only the gear on their back and no collars, as well as no camp or pens and numbered only six. While they grew discouraged over these thoughts, Heather Graham, a younger slaver, held them together with promises of rebuilding and revenge, but said they had to play the game to do so. 'The Game' consisted of working as scouts for Custer's Army in the city, and over the next two years they would encounter and kill plenty of junkies as well as raiders, until they had saved enough to purchase a crate of collars and supplies. They would then look for captives, bringing in only one or two at a time to better control them, and claimed a small gas station near camp rapid as their new base. While a far-cry of the previous numbers they brought in, their captures would add up and they would begin to improve their new home, as well as attract recruits, numbering 12 by 2263. The Toll Bridge would still serve as scouts to supplement their income, but had returned to slaving primarily, even joining the two at times by collaring targets seen on patrols. This would especially apply to pockets of vault dwellers, both for revenge and to gain favor with their allies and protectors. By 2270 they had regrown to 26 slavers and were much bolder in their raids, now targeting Regulator patrols as well as raiders. The CAA quietly encouraged Toll Bridge's efforts against the former but couldn't officially support them due to the peace between the two sides, but paid a good price for raiders. The slavers had also grown paranoid about another attack, and had outfitted their base with automated turrets, landmines, razor-wire and guard dogs, which served to discourage casual raids. They would also expand the compound over the next few years to accommodate their growing numbers and would peak at 50 in 2276. That year Custer's Army would expand into Vault 52, only to have it cleared by raiders. Toll Bridge would aid the CAA in their vengeance, gathering dozens of slaves in the next three years, until it was discovered The Rockers were involved in the attack. Having several run-ins with these mercenaries in recent years, the slavers kept their eyes open for any rockers, but stuck to their age old raider enemies. Toll Bridge would suffer a handful of losses during these years, which only increased in 2280 with the start of the General's War, as the slavers jumped at the chance to destroy the hated Regulators. AS the raiders attacked the CAA baggage train however, the Toll Bridge crew broke off and returned to their compound, taking a line of twenty collared raiders with them. As 2287 winds down, the slavers have been almost halved, though the survivors are battle hardened and well-equipped, spending most of their time battling the Regulator aligned Rapid City Auxillary Corps, seeing through their guise. Leadership The Toll Bridge decide their leader by a vote, though after being chosen the individual has absolute power, setting schedules for patrols and captive feeding, negotiating with merchants and controlling diplomacy with other groups. Because of this, the leader is usually well liked or at least well-respected and thought capable of guiding the band to wealth. Membership The slavers are almost exclusively made up of outsiders to Rapid City which is another point of conflict with the native groups. Most are attracted by the appeal of quick money and are guided by slave merchants, though some are former troopers of the CAA or are more open-minded than other locals. Category:Slavers Category:Badlands Category:Groups